Give Me a Reason
by 12beastboy
Summary: A monster somehow bypasses the defenses of Camp Half-Blood. However, it seems to be fixated on only one demigod, and Leo's not sure he's strong enough to defeat it on his own. Set right after Lost Hero.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: The title of this story comes from the amazing Three Days Grace song, "Give Me a Reason," which I have unofficially officially decreed as Leo's theme song. These events take place right after Lost Hero, I believe. During the whole Argo-building phase kind of.**

 **I don't own any of these characters, they belong to Rick Riordan and whatnot.**

* * *

Leo stared, unblinking, at his current target. He was fighting a losing battle, and he knew it. This was one foe he'd never been able to defeat. He could dodge this enemy for a little while, but it always managed to beat him in the end. No amount of sword-fighting or fire-blasting could help Leo now.

He was nearing the end of this battle - he could feel it.

And it would end as every other skirmish Leo had had with this particular foe had ended before - with Curiosity conquering what little Logic Leo had hidden away somewhere.

Logic: _It says, "Under no circumstance should this chest ever be opened." I'm thinking this qualifies as a circumstance. And I'm also thinking that whoever carved that into the wood of this box had a very good reason to do so._ Do not _open this box._

Curiosity: _Open it._

Curiosity always had such good arguments, Leo thought as he stared at the medium-sized chest in front of him. It was a fairly normal-looking chest - wooden, with no special inlays of gold or anything. The only decorations that adorned the box were a heavy, metal padlock with no keyhole and the sentence that had been carved deep into the side: "Under no circumstance should this chest ever be opened."

Leo knew a challenge when he heard one.

And goodness forbid he ever back down from one.

Logic was beginning to sound surly, as though it knew this battle was already lost. _There's not even a keyhole in the padlock. Someone really didn't want this to be opened. Can you just, I don't know, be reasonable for once?_

But of course, the ever-faithful Curiosity countered with, _Open it._

And it's not like anyone else would _know_. He was alone in Bunker 9, as he had been when he'd stumbled upon this lovely treasure trove of mystery ten minutes ago. He'd come in here to work on the designs for the ship and had gotten a tad distracted. The chest with the tantalizing dare (because that's definitely what it was, Leo knew) had been stored at the back of a large wardrobe he hadn't explored until today. It had briefly occurred to him to tell someone about his recent discovery, but an almost (definitely) childish thought had stopped him. What if someone else got to see what was inside before he did? _He_ found it - he should be the first to view its contents.

Leo grasped the padlock in his hand.

Logic's voice was quiet in warning. _Leo. . . ._

Leo hesitated.

 _Open it._

Flames erupted across his fingers until the padlock was white-hot. Then, with a swift twist, he snapped the soft metal.

He stared at the chest, excitement blooming in his rib cage. This was _it._ He was about to lay eyes on something that no one had seen for decades, going by the amount of dust layered on top of the box. "Oh yeah, who's the man, Leo's the man," Leo chanted quietly to himself as he reached for the chest.

With a quick flip of his wrist, he threw the lid of the chest back.

Curiosity shriveled in disappointment. Logic sighed in relief.

There was nothing in the chest. Nothing at all. Not even an indent in the wood to hint at whatever might have been stored there eons ago.

Leo looked at the chest in disgust. _Aw man, that was so lame._

Then he inwardly shrugged, shut the lid, and went back to the table at the center of the room, promptly forgetting about the insignificant chest with the inane warning on the side.

His second mistake.


	2. Chapter 2

Leo didn't know how it had happened.

He'd thought he was under _control_. He'd thought he was done being a _threat_ to everyone.

 _Like_ that's _ever going to happen_ , a small voice in his mind sneered at him.

Leo couldn't help but despondently agree.

Luckily, no one had gotten hurt. _This time._ He'd gotten . . . angry. One of the stupid Ares kids had been taunting and bullying him ever since he'd arrived back at Camp Half-Blood. It wasn't like it was anything new to Leo. He was used to it by now.

But then the idiot had said something about his _mom_. . . .

The last straw.

 _No one._ No one insulted his mom. _Ever._

No one had told the Ares kid that.

The next clear memory Leo had of that incident was standing above the kid, who'd been flat on his back and propped up on his elbows, his hair singed and his face covered in soot. His eyes had been wide with terror, and he'd tried to scoot back, all the while pleading, "C'mon, man, I didn't mean it. I'm sorry – _I'm sorry!_ "

Leo had looked down at his hands and realized they were both covered in white-hot flames. All of the grass within a ten-foot radius of him had been completely blackened – burnt to a crisp. Then he'd raised his gaze to the large crowd forming a ring around him and the boy. They were completely silent, their wide eyes telling Leo what their mouths did not. _He's a monster._

Then he had run.

He'd been prepared to shove his way past the other campers, but they'd parted before him like he'd been carrying a deadly, contagious disease.

Maybe he was.

As he'd fled, he'd almost imagined he'd heard the thoughts directed at him.

 _Freak._ Diablo. _Demon-child. What is wrong with him?_

They were scared of him now.

Maybe that was for the best. They wouldn't lower their guard around him anymore – they'd always be wary, always on the alert.

Of course, it wouldn't matter anymore.

He was leaving.

He glanced inside his cabin, realizing with relief that the Hephaestus house was deserted. Then he ran to his bed and hastily began shoving his meager amount of belongings into a small backpack he'd hidden under the bed. No matter where he went, he always took his bag with him. It was big enough to hold everything he needed, but not so large as to attract unwanted attention: the perfect escape knapsack.

He dropped it on the bed and then checked his watch. _7:07 pm._ Good. The other Hephaestus children wouldn't head back toward their cabin until at least 8:30 – if he left now, no one would notice his absence until then. A full hour and a half start on them wasn't so bad.

 _Of course,_ the cold, calculating voice in his mind said, _you're assuming they'll actually_ look _for you._

"Shut up!" Leo hissed. Uh-oh. It was bad enough he was hearing voices in his head – now he was _talking_ to them.

Not a good sign.

It disregarded his words and plowed on. _You know why you keep running, Leo? You don't run toward freedom – you certainly don't run toward love. You don't deserve love and you know it. No, you're too busy glancing back over your shoulder to even notice what you're running toward._

Leo clenched his fists. "Stop it!" Someone was pounding on his door and yelling, but Leo couldn't make out what they were saying over the increasingly loud voice in his head.

 _You're so concerned with running away – but do you even know what you're running away from? I bet you haven't even realized it yet. You still think you're running away from commitment, from friends you can hurt. But you're trying to escape something much more horrifying than any of that. Your deepest, darkest fear. You know which one I'm talking about – the one you dream about_ every night.

"Stop," moaned Leo, his hands over his ears. His back hit the wall of his room, and he slid down it until he was crouched in a ball.

 _You're terrified it's going to catch up with you one day._

Leo shook his head frantically, trying to block out the words pounding into his skull.

 _But don't you know you can't outrun yourself, Leo?_

He closed his eyes, quietly chanting, "It's not real. It's not real."

"Leo Valdez," the voice, clearer than it had ever been before, purred. "I'm as real as you can get." Then a frigid hand cupped itself around Leo's chin.

Leo's eyes snapped open at the same time his door crashed into the wall. A tall woman with rich, dark hair and a mottled green and brown dress stood before him, her open eyes staring into his, her hand tilting his chin up. Jason stood in the doorway, his chest heaving, his eyes fixated on the woman. "Get away from him," Jason said, pointing his sword at the woman – at Gaea.

Gaea tilted her head to the side, a cold smile on her face, her bright eyes shifting from leafy green to earthy brown. "Jason. I'm glad you could make it."

"I am too," Leo said, recovering from his shock, "but I'm pretty sure for a different reason."

Jason stepped forward, his sword still aimed at the goddess. "I said get away from him."

Leo figured Jason could use some help and promptly lit his hands on fire. He stood, intent on blasting a fireball at Mother Earth, but she grasped both of his arms with surprising force and shoved him up against the wall. "Leo!" Jason shouted.

Gaea leaned forward until her mouth was near his ear, her dark, luscious hair brushing against his collarbone, and whispered, "I wouldn't do that. Have you learned nothing from your mother's demise? Do you really want that to happen to your friends?"

The flames in Leo's hands instantly died away, all breath deserting his lungs as the memory of _that day_ engulfed his mind. His vengeful side wanted nothing more than to burst into flame and attack Dirt Face head-on, but he willed the fire in him to settle. He wouldn't – couldn't – let it happen again.

"Ah." She smiled sweetly and patted his cheek, looking more like a pleased mother than a psychotic master of mud. "Good choice."

Seeing that her attention was diverted, Jason charged toward the goddess. Gaea turned to look at him just as he swung his sword forward . . . and it passed through her stomach harmlessly. She smirked at the shocked expression on Jason's face. "It doesn't quite work like that."

As her dark brown eyes changed to a lighter, tan color, Leo suddenly realized something wasn't . . . _right. Well, Mother Nature is pinning me against a wall and probably planning to kill me,_ he mused, _so I might have to be a bit more specific as to what "right" is._

Weapons couldn't hurt her. That wasn't normal. Even an all-powerful goddess should at least be _injured_ after getting stabbed by a sword made out of Imperial Gold. _Think_ , he commanded himself. There was something he was missing – something _big._ But what?

Jason glanced down at his sword, then back up at the goddess, confusion evident in his blue eyes. "What – how -"

Gaea laughed lightly, her hold on Leo loosening. "It'd be easier for everyone if you just stopped trying, Jason. _You_ can't hurt me."

Jason gave a sideways glance to Leo, as if silently asking, _What do we do?_

Leo stared back at Jason. _Seriously? You're asking_ me?

Apparently, Jason had received a different message than the one Leo had given, because he suddenly gave a loud cry and ran toward Gaea, his sword outstretched in front of him. This time, his whole body passed through the goddess' form. As Gaea twisted her head to the side, an irritated look on her face, Leo gripped her forearms and shoved her away from him.

 _So I can touch her, but Jason can't?_ he thought. He gave himself enough space to slip under her arm and stand by Jason, who took a step in front of him.

Leo rolled his eyes as he stared at the back of Jason's head. "My knight in shining armor," he drawled sarcastically, pulling a hammer from his tool belt.

"Trying to be the hero again, Jason?" Gaea said, her hands on her hips. "I don't think that's going to work very well for you this time."

Leo leaned toward Jason and whispered quietly, "Dude, I don't remember Mother Earth being this . . . spunky."

Gaea fixed her now-green gaze on Leo, a coy smile on her lips. "You mean you haven't figured it out yet, Leo?"

The gears in Leo's mind began whirring as he quickly reviewed everything that had happened from the moment he'd heard the voice in his head. He tried to recall what was out of place . . . what piece didn't fit. When he realized what he'd missed, he felt the urge to slam his head against a wall. _How did I not notice that?_ he thought incredulously.

"You're not Gaea," he said to the woman.

Not-Gaea slowly clapped her hands, a somewhat disdainful look on her face. "It took you long enough. I thought you were smarter than this."

Jason stole a look back at Leo, his eyebrows drawn together. "What? Why isn't she Gaea?"

"Look at her eyes, _hombre._ "

He glanced at her muddy brown eyes before turning back to face Leo, still looking perplexed. "What about them?"

"They're open." Leo waited for his friend to make the connection.

Jason's mouth dropped open as the pieces came together in his mind, as well. "Oh . . ." he breathed. "Gaea's not awake yet."

"Hmph," Not-Gaea huffed, examining her fingernails. "She's such a grump – not _nearly_ as sweet as me. You might want to keep in mind that she is _not_ a morning person."

Leo's grip tightened around his hammer. "Then who _are_ you?" _And how do you know so much about me?_

Not-Gaea's startlingly green eyes gazed into his. _Oh, Leo Valdez, I know_ everything _about you._

Before Leo could ask if Not-Gaea had just read his thoughts and actually _responded_ to them, Jason raised his sword, pointing it accusingly at her. "Tell us who you are."

Not-Gaea threw back her head and laughed. "Ooh, so brave, Jason. What are you going to do next? Throw toothpicks at me if I don't answer?"

Leo could almost hear Jason grinding his teeth together. "Just answer the question."

Not-Gaea placed a thoughtful expression on her face, as if she was considering it. "Um . . . how many guesses do I get?" But at the same time, she spoke into Leo's mind, _Not the sharpest blade in the armory, is he?_

"Stop it," Leo muttered, ignoring the look Jason shot at him. "Get out of my head."

 _But your head is so_ fun _, Leo._

Leo's free hand balled into a fist. "I said _get out_!"

Then he blinked, and suddenly she was standing less than a foot in front of him. "Leo," she said in a susurrate voice, her mouth twisting into a smile that made Leo sick, "I've only just begun."

Out of pure instinct that had been honed by sleepless nights in the streets and sword-wielding, supernatural baddies, Leo swung the hammer in his hand. It connected with her jaw with a solid _thwap_ , sending her reeling backwards. She clutched one hand to her face, a strange sound bursting from her throat. It took Leo a few seconds to realize that the sound was laughter.

Then her body began to grow . . . blurry. Like an out-of-focus picture, her edges were becoming smeared and smudged. Within a few seconds she was completely transparent, and then she vanished into the air. Her echoing laugh, however, still resonated throughout the room for several moments.

After the disembodied chortle died away, Jason finally spoke. "What just happened?"

"I'm not a betting man, but if I _had_ to guess, it'd be that Gaea has a twin sister. Normally I'd guess 'evil' twin sister, but in this case, I'm not entirely sure which one deserves that title. Does Gaea even _have_ a twin sister?" Leo was starting to ramble, but his mouth was on autopilot, and his brain didn't seem to care enough to grab the controls again. "So would she have the same powers as Gaea? You know, the whole 'I can control dirt and you suckers can't ha ha,' or would she -"

"Leo!" Jason barked. Leo's lips obediently snapped together. "This is serious - a monster got into Camp Half-Blood. There must be a breach in the defenses or something." He strode toward the door. "We have to tell Chiron."

"Hey," Leo said, "Let's look at the bright side. She's gone!"

Jason grunted. "Yeah, but for how long?" Then he was out of the cabin, headed toward the Big House.

Leo returned the hammer to his tool belt, ready to follow Jason. He supposed he could always leave Camp Half-Blood after they dealt with this monster. Then he froze. Despite the warmth of the cabin, he felt like Khione was breathing down his neck as a voice reverberated through his head.

 _I'm going to enjoy breaking you, Leo Valdez._


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Trigger warning mentioned at the bottom.**

* * *

"And you're _sure_ it wasn't Gaea?" Chiron asked for like the fifty kabillionth time.

Leo and Jason had just finished describing the "situation," as Jason liked to call it, to the centaur, who seemed to borderline-obsessively want clarification that the monster had not been Momma Earth. Of course, in their explanation, Leo had left out the part about the monster being able to telepathically communicate with him. It was a disquieting feeling, knowing someone - some _thing_ \- had been inside his head, and he didn't feel entirely comfortable sharing that with anyone. Besides, if Jason wasn't about to say anything about it, it must not be that big of a deal. Because surely the being had been mentally communicating with both of them, right?

"Dude," Leo said, exasperated. "She admitted it herself. _It wasn't Gaea._ "

"I'm just checking all of our options, Leo," Chiron said mildly.

If by "all of our options" he meant "Gaea," then yes, he had checked all of their options _multiple_ times.

But Leo figured that kind of snarky remark would be unappreciated by his current audience. A son of Jupiter and a really old centaur made for a tough crowd when it came to cracking jokes.

"So it must have been an illusion of some sort?" Chiron muttered, seemingly thinking out loud. "But no, it had the ability to interact with someone of its choosing." His next words were directed at the two boys. "I'm going to have to research this some more. In the meantime, alert the Cabin leaders to what just transpired. But try not to let the entire camp hear about this. We don't want to have to deal with mass hysteria, especially when we don't know exactly what we're dealing with yet. For all we know, it could very well still be within the camp's borders."

Jason nodded crisply. "I'll call a meeting with the camp counselors."

As Jupiter's son walked out the door, Leo said to Chiron, "You know, I can probably help with the research. I'm sure Bunker 9 is full of research and information that I haven't looked through yet." _Because research and information are so much less fun than exploding toys._

Another comment whose genius would go unrecognized by the room's occupants.

Chiron nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, that could be beneficial." But as Leo turned around to leave, the centaur said firmly, "But of course you won't be going _alone_ after what just happened?" Except the way he said it made it sound more like a command than a question.

Leo pivoted back. "Aw, don't worry, Chiron. I've got my two best friends with me." He held up first his left hand, then his right. "Flameface and Fireball."

Chiron rolled his eyes, then sighed heavily. "All right, go. But be back before curfew."

Leo mock-saluted. "Sir, yes, sir."

* * *

They probably should have examined the definition of "be back before curfew" before he left, Leo mused. Because really, that could mean a multitude of things. "Be back before curfew" as in "be in your cabin before curfew"? "Be back before curfew" as in "leave Bunker 9 before curfew"?

Well, Leo supposed it didn't matter much anyway, seeing as curfew had been ten minutes ago, and he still hadn't reached the cabins yet. He'd scoured most of the bunker, but there had been nothing about strange illusions that could only interact with certain people. Or anything about Gaea's twin sister.

Leo still hadn't given up on that particular theory yet.

He was returning tomorrow to finish his search of the bunker. The room was too large to search completely in one night.

A twig snapped in the silence, and Leo emerged from his thoughts, almost startled to see how much time had passed. The sun had disappeared, and the thick foliage above him swallowed any moonlight that might have been visible. He peered into the darkness and suddenly felt as though it was smothering him, creeping down his throat and turning the air in his lungs to lead.

Flames erupted from his hands, but instead of comforting Leo, the light only increased his sense of unease. Deep shadows danced and quivered in the flickering glow of the fire as the sound of rustling leaves nearly drowned out an owl's hoot. Agitated, Leo rubbed his fiery hands together and started moving in the direction of what he hoped was the cabins.

For a few seconds, only Leo's quiet breathing was heard. Then a crackling noise sounded behind him, and he whirled around, his flaming arms held out in front of him. "Who's there?" he squeaked, desperately wishing he sounded less like a frightened seven year-old.

Dark shadows unsteadily lengthened and shortened in reply.

Letting out a shaky, breathless laugh at himself, Leo turned back around.

And ran into someone.

An unmanly yelp escaped Leo's throat as he rapidly backed away from the person. The light emitting from Leo's fingers cast the man's face in shadow and lit up his brown, grease-splattered overalls and liquor-stained shirt. However, Leo's focus was not on the man's clothing, but instead on the large, tanned hand that was gripping a black leather belt.

Leo's breath caught in his throat as a surge of unchecked terror bubbled into his chest. "N-no," he stammered, his hands shaking. The flames became even more erratic as his mind seemed to stall. "I – you aren't – you can't be here."

The man said nothing. He took a step forward, throwing familiarly cold, blue eyes into view and confirming Leo's deep-rooted fear.

This was Aaron Hoffer. Leo's fifth home. The one that had left him with more than just emotional scars. Leo, at that time fourteen, had tried running away on multiple occasions, but each time the police brought him back to what they thought was his kind, worried foster father. And each night of Leo's unwanted return, Aaron would very clearly express his displeasure toward his temporary son. The long, white scars on Leo's back were testament to those nights. He was only taken away from the home once an elderly neighbor heard shattering glass and loud shouts coming from the Hoffer household three days after Leo's last attempt at running away. The last time Leo had seen Aaron, the man had been in the back of a police car.

Yet, as despicable as Aaron was, he was still human. A human who, by all rights, _should not be at Camp Half-Blood._ Unless . . . Leo's heart clenched. _Unless he wasn't human._

Aaron advanced another step.

Leo held up his dimly glowing hands, his heart pounding so hard he was half afraid it would come loose and lodge itself in his throat. "S-stay away."

A cruel smile twisted Aaron's face. " _Boy_ ," was all he said. Was all he _needed_ to say. That growled three-letter word had haunted Leo long after the teenager escaped from the man and his beatings.

Before Leo had time to react, Aaron crossed the distance between the two of them and backhanded the demigod across the face. Leo's head snapped to the side as he stumbled backwards. He'd barely regained his bearings before Aaron gripped his arm and bodily heaved him at the nearest tree. Stinging pain assaulted the left side of Leo's body as it forcefully scraped against rough bark.

Aaron raised the belt.

Leo ran.

He sprinted away from the man, heedless of the sharp branches that sliced into his face and the uneven soil that kept tripping him up. He continually glanced behind him, waiting to see a lumbering, staggering form give chase, but there was no one there. Aaron wasn't following him.

His laughter was, though.

A booming, grating chortle that Leo had hoped he would never have to hear again grew fainter and fainter the faster Leo dashed through the forest. At first he'd thought (hoped) he'd been dreaming, but the smarting pain he felt was proof enough of the reality of his situation. He had to get back to the camp. The others had to know that the camp's defenses had been breached – majorly.

He finally burst out of the forest, panting, his legs ready to collapse underneath him. He resisted the urge, though. He could rest later. Chiron needed to know this _now_.

He turned his feet toward the direction of the Big House without pausing, but he'd barely taken two steps before someone called his name. "Leo!"

He stopped and looked to see a figure running at him. "Piper," he began saying, already starting toward the Big House again, "I don't -"

The rest of his words were muffled as the daughter of Aphrodite threw her arms around him in a suffocating hug. "Leo!" she exclaimed. "Jason told me everything that happened but then I couldn't find you and no one knew where you were and I haven't been able to even _talk_ to you since then and you must be feeling _awful_ because we don't even know what kind of monster it was or how it got into Camp yet and _oh my gosh you're bleeding!_ "

Leo's mind was still trying to comprehend everything that was somehow said to him in one breath, but he managed to register the last few words. He glanced down at himself. His left arm and torso were thinly coated in blood from the lacerations he'd received from the tree, and his face stung from the shallow cuts he'd received from sharp twigs. "Oh, yeah, that. It's not as bad as it looks, though." He cheekily smiled, hoping his grin looked more pieced-together than he was. "Scout's honor."

But Piper's eyes were locked onto something behind him. "Leo," she said, her voice edged with alarm. "Was there someone else in the woods with you?"

Cold horror clutched Leo's heart. He turned around in time to catch a glimpse of blue eyes before something slammed into his jaw and knocked him to the ground. He looked up, dazed, as Aaron lowered his fist. Then Aaron locked his hand around Leo's throat and lifted him from the ground.

Piper was screaming, but her voice sounded far away. Everything but the fingers around his neck and the beer-soaked breath wafting in his face was far away. Leo scrabbled at Aaron's arm, but his feeble efforts did nothing to loosen the hold on his throat. He couldn't _breathe_.

"Let him go!" Piper shouted. When Aaron didn't respond, she grabbed her dagger from her belt and sliced at his arm.

Her dagger passed right through him.

Piper gaped at her weapon. "What?" she breathed.

Black dots were starting to swarm Leo's vision. He was going to die. _Well,_ he thought sourly, _this is not how I imagined my death_.

 _Oh,_ a familiar voice spoke in his mind, _would you prefer a different method?_

If Leo had been capable, he would have gasped. As it was, he just managed to choke out, "Not-Gaea?"

Aaron/Not-Aaron/Not-Gaea frowned. "Really, Leo," he said in Aaron's low, raspy voice. "I'd have thought you would have come up with a better name for me by now." He snorted. "'Not-Gaea' is a little unoriginal. I expect better from you."

Something hard was pressed into Leo's hand. He glanced down to see Piper staring directly at Not-Aaron. "I can't do anything," she said, directing her words to Leo, her beautiful eyes narrowed in anger. "But I think you can."

Leo's vision was blurring. Piper's head was only a smudge of chestnut-brown, and Not-Aaron was a colorless smear against the dark backdrop of the woods.

Not-Aaron smirked at Piper. "Piper, the fierce, sweet child of Aphrodite. Tell me, how is your father recuperating from his very close call?"

Piper's voice was stiff yet somehow panicky when she answered. "How do you know about that?"

Leo didn't have time to wait for the answer. With the last of his strength, he thrust his hand upward, the dagger that Piper had passed to him piercing Not-Aaron's forearm. Not-Aaron cursed and quickly withdrew his hand, releasing Leo and allowing the boy to crumple to the ground.

Leo lay on his side, grasping at his neck and gasping for air. Not-Aaron was clutching his wounded arm, but even as Leo watched through half-lidded eyes, he was starting to fade away. "I'm not done with you, Leo Valdez," he said, his eyes bright with excitement. "Not yet." Then he was gone, and a bloodless dagger fell with a muffled _thump_ to the soft ground.

"Leo!" Piper shrieked, evidently not at all concerned by the vaporization of a once-solid person. She knelt down at his side, babbling incoherently and shouting at someone beyond Leo's field of vision.

Then, mercifully, Leo passed out.

* * *

 **TW: Domestic abuse**


End file.
